ARMY VETERAN CAN’T CATCH A BREAK

Here’s a good one, Glenford Turner had surgery in 2013 in Connecticut. Four years later, doctors discovered what appeared to be a metal surgical instrument that appears to be a scalpel had been accidentally left inside his body. Way to go VA Hospital, this poor guy is an Army veteran as well. Thanks trainee surgeon. Court documents say a lawsuit is coming.

LAWSUIT AGAINST TRAINEE SURGEON

The recent lawsuit claims that a trainee surgeon performed a drastic prostatectomy at the VA hospital in Connecticut on the West Haven Campus. The object was discovered when the Army Veteran Turner, 61, went for a MRI in mid-2017 for a non-related medical issue. The magnet in the MRI machine reacted to the scalpel in his abdomen, and the scalpel was inside his body moving around in response to the magnet.

COURT DOCUMENTS DESCRIBE A 5 INCH SCALPEL

A separate court document describes the object as a “5 inch scalpel handle” inside the Army veteran. It’s not clear whether the blade is attached to the handle, because neither Faxon nor Turner has had access to the object. It appears long, thin and pointed on an X-ray. Turner then went through an additional surgery to remove the instrument.

VA STAYS MUM, BUT FOREIGN OBJECTS LEFT IN BODIES FREQUENTLY

The VA Connecticut did not provide specific comment on the lawsuit, stating: “VA does not typically comment on pending litigation.” It’s expected for the case to take three plus years to reach a resolution, but a settlement is the expectation. Leaving surgical materials inside patients is surprisingly frequent. Nationwide we preform about 28 million operations, roughly, about 1500 cases like this occur per year. Where a foreign object is left inside a body. Sponges are most common and may cause infections, needles, towels, surgical screws, and clamps round out the top five.